About ACCA

ACCA is the largest and fastest-growing international accountancy body with 432,000 students and 154,000 members in 170 countries. Its aim is to offer the first choice qualifications to people of application, ability and ambition around the world who seek a rewarding career in accountancy, finance and management. ACCA works to achieve and promote the highest professional, ethical and governance standards and advance the public interest. ACCA's reputation is grounded in over 100 years of providing accounting and financial qualifications. Its long traditions are complemented by modern thinking, backed by a predominantly young, dynamic membership (NOTE: the information contained in this page is taken from official web-site of ACCA:http://www.accaglobal.com)

ACCA Qualification

In order to qualify as an ACCA member, any individual registering on the ACCA Qualification after 1 January 2013 will need to complete:

14 exams (nine of which are eligible for exemption)

relevant practical experience, with a minimum of three years

a Professional Ethics module.

While completion of the Professional Ethics module will not be mandatory for existing students converting to the new qualification, they will be encouraged to complete the module.

The new ACCA Qualification consists of Fundamentals and Professional Levels.

Fundamentals Level

The Fundamentals level is divided into two modules - Knowledge and Skills. The Knowledge module (F1-F3) introduces students to the core areas of financial and management accounting. The Skills module (F4-F9) contains six subjects which comprehensively cover the main technical areas that any accountant - regardless of their future career aspirations - are expected to have mastered. These comprise law, performance management, taxation, financial reporting, auditing, and financial management.

Fundamentals Level

Knowledge module

F1 Accountant in Business (AB)

F2 Management Accounting (MA)

F3 Financial Accounting (FA)

Skills module

F4 Corporate and Business Law (CL)

F5 Performance Management (PM)

F6 Taxation (TX)

F7 Financial Reporting (FR)

F8 Audit and Assurance (AA)

F9 Financial Management (FM)

Professional Level

The Professional level is divided into two modules - Essentials (P1-P3) and Options (P4-P7). Both modules have been set at an intellectual level equivalent to that expected of a student taking a Masters degree. The focus of the syllabus at this level is to build upon the technical skills already acquired, and explore more advanced professional skills, techniques, and values that are required and used by the expert accountant acting in an advisory or consultancy role at a senior level. All applicants must complete the three papers in the Essentials module. The Options module contains four papers. These are directly underpinned and supported by their equivalent within the Skills module in the Fundamentals level. Applicants select two out of four Option papers.

Professional Level

Essentials

P1 Professional Accountant (PA)

P2 Corporate Reporting (CR)

P3 Business Analysis (BA)

Options

P4 Advanced Financial Management (AFM)

P5 Advanced Performance Management (APM)

P6 Advanced Taxation (ATX)

P7 Advanced Audit and Assurance (AAA)

ACCA Exam Structure and Rules

The full program includes 14 exams. All exams are in English and are divided into 2 levels:

Fundamentals Level – Includes 9 core exams

Professional Level – Includes 2 optional and 3 core exams

The full program is mostly completed in 2-3 years taking 2-3 exams each session. The pass mark for all papers is 50%. A candidate can take up to 4 papers during one exam session, but all papers must be taken in order. Knowledge module exams will be two-hours long. These will be available both as computer-based exams (CBEs) – providing automatic marking and immediate results – and also as traditional paper-based exams. CBEs at higher levels of the qualification will not be introduced as part of the new qualification. Skills module exams and all Professional level exams will be three-hours and fifteen minutes long and will make use of a range of assessment methods such as short-answer questions, extended computational exercises, essays, scenarios and case studies.

In order to become a Chartered Certified Accountant, you have to complete all 14 exams, meet the ACCA's practical requirements and complete online Professional Ethics Module. The practical requirement is to provide 3 years' supervised work experience of accounting-related nature. This experience can be obtained before, during or after studying for ACCA exams.

In order to be able to take the ACCA exams, you have to:

Register with ACCA as a student

Register for particular exams

Fees for registration

Initial Subscription (payable on registration) - £*79

Annual Subscription (payable on 1 January following date of registration) - £ 79

Re-registration fee - £ 79, in addition to any amounts unpaid at the time of resignation/removal.

Exam/Exemption fees payable before each exam - December 2011:

Knowledge £ 64 per paper

Skills £ 81 per paper

Professional £ 94 per paper

* £ = Great Britain Pound

More information is available upon personal request six days a week, Sunday to Friday, at ACCA Connect, located at ACCA's Glasgow office in the UK: